Page 54 of Charming Artemis

He didn’t know his father’s answer. And the heartbreak of it all was... he never would.

Chapter Nineteen

A week passed at LamptonPark. Stanley’s family had not yet arrived. Neither had Arabella and Linus—they too had been called to Lampton Park, Arabella being an honorary member of the family. Charlie told himself that was what was weighing on Mater, but he wasn’t fully sure. She’d grown quieter over the last couple of days.

He sat in the small sitting room the family had often used when there’d been fewer of them. Philip was inside reading theTimes. Mater was there as well. A book sat open on her lap, but she wasn’t paying it the least heed. Her fingers were wrapped around the silver and blue topaz pendant she so often wore. Her gaze was not focused on anything in particular, and her thoughts appeared to be miles away.

Charlie moved to where Philip sat. Voice low, he said, “I’m worried about Mater. She seems unhappy.”

Philip talked to him from behind his paper, also speaking quietly enough to not be overheard across the room. “We are soon to be reopening Father’s will and reading the last of his instructions. I suspect her grief is growing a bit raw again.”

He did not at all like the idea of Mater grieving. “Could you not simply summarize what remains to be executed of Father’s will and spare her the reading of it?”

Philip shook his head no. “I am not the one who is charged with unsealing and executing it. I am as helpless to spare her this as everyone else.”

None of them could relieve her burden. “Do you at least know why this final portion is to be readnow?”

“The instructions were that this final part of the will be opened once you either reached your majority or married, whichever occurred first.”

His heart dropped. “Then I am the reason she’s struggling.”

“Neither of our parents would have wanted you to be a child your entire life, Charlie. Neither would they have wished you to be alone. Setting current events in motion is not an unfortunate thing.”

Charlie slumped low in his chair. It wasn’t a very gentlemanly posture but one he’d assumed again and again as he’d grown up. “It has not particularly been afortunatething either.”

“If I could have thought of anything to allow you and Artemis to avoid this, I would have stopped it. But there was no escape.” Philip didn’t generally go so long without making some outlandish comment. That his expression and tone remained somber was a bit disconcerting. “Sorrel, in particular, racked her brain for any possible escape. Neither of us could think of a thing.”

If Philip was going to be responsible and insightful, Charlie would far rather his brother’s focus be on something else. Things were a little better with Artemis but not enough to bear too much scrutiny.

“Speaking of Sorrel,” Charlie said, “how is she faring?”

Philip folded his paper and set it aside. “She is not walking well. The pain is getting to be too much for her. I suspect it is time we begin considering a wheeled chair to help her get about, but she is not the least inclined toward the idea. My Sorrel is a bit stubborn, something I am certain will come as a complete shock to you.”

Charlie pressed a hand to his heart in what he knew was an exact mimic of one of Philip’s signature gestures. “A Jonquil marrying a lady with opinions? Shocking.”

“What is it about us that we are so drawn to ladies who challenge us at every turn?” Philip asked with a laugh.

“Masochism?”

“More likely a fear of boredom.”

Charlie pushed out a breath. “I am certainly not bored.”

That brought on the very scrutiny he’d wanted to avoid. “Are the two of you going to work this out?”

Charlie shrugged. “What choice do we have? Neither of us wants to live the rest of our lives in misery. We’ll have to sort something.” Theyweretrying. He felt increasingly hopeful that they would manage to reach some kind of contentment between them. But while he couldn’t speak for her, mere contentment was not what he’d imagined when he’d thought of one day marrying.

He’d always wanted what his brothers had. What his parents had had. What Artemis’s siblings had. But it felt out of reach.

Voices sounded in the corridor, with footfalls seeming to draw nearer.

“Never fear, Mater,” Philip called out. “That’ll be Stanley’s brood and, I daresay, Arabella and Linus close on their heels. No need to worry further.”

She glanced back at him and nodded.

Charlie didn’t at all like how low her spirits were. What could he possibly do to help? It seemed all he’d done these past weeks was add to her worries. Having all of her grandchildren there would bring her some happiness. Then again, she’d had nearly all of them with her of late, and she was still heavyhearted.

The butler did not step into the doorway to announce Charlie’s one remaining brother or honorary sister. Indeed, it wasn’t either of the anticipated arrivals who appeared there. It was, instead, one unknown gentleman after another. All at least two decades older than Philip, all complete strangers. They looked immediately to Mater, who sat facing the other direction.

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